January 26, Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) announced that athletes from Russia and Belarus will be able to compete at this year’s Asian Games despite the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict.
In a statement, OCA states: “All athletes, regardless of nationality or passport, can participate in sports competitions.”
The proposal comes a day following the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said it would “continue to explore” the possibility of the Russian team competing at the 2024 Summer Olympics scheduled to take place in Paris. France) despite Ukraine’s calls to ban Russian athletes from participating.
[IOC tìm cách thức cho phép VĐV Nga và Belarus trở lại các giải đấu]
The IOC pledged solidarity with Ukraine, but said it was looking for a way for Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete at the sporting event in Paris next year. “Athletes should not be banned from competition just because of their passports,” the IOC stressed.
Russia and Belarus have been restricted from participating in Olympic sports events for nearly a year following Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine from February 2022.
The OCA statement paves the way for Russian athletes to compete at the 2023 Asian Games and these are also the Paris 2024 Olympic qualifying competitions.
Currently, qualifying competitions of a number of sports are also taking place.
Nguyen Hang (VNA/Vietnam+)